News at noon: Jane Castor gains Tampa unions' backing, David Straz skips their first one-on-one forum; Bucs bracing to lose Adam Humphries and Kwon Alexander to free agency; and more

Former police chief Jane Castor gained the endorsement of the firefighters and city workers' unions Monday, giving her the support of all three city employee unions. Meantime, Castor will be taking the stage by herself tonight for the first one-on-one mayoral forum since the March 5 city election, organized by the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce at the University of Tampa's Falk Theatre. Castor's opponent David Straz won't attend because of an "unavoidable conflict," spokesman Jarrod Holbrook said.

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar arrived in Tampa around 2 a.m. on Sunday. At least she thought she did. The clock in her hotel room said 3 a.m. Though a victim of the annual "spring forward," the Minnesota Democrat declined to weigh in on a push by some in Congress to end Daylight Saving. Klobuchar became the first 2020 Democratic candidate for president to visit the Tampa Bay area when she held a round table on climate change Sunday. After the event, she sat down with the Tampa Bay Times to discuss her positions on the environment, the crisis in Venezuela, Cuba, Ron DeSantis' education plan, Joe Biden's busing quote and Andrew Gillum.

Rick Scott reported his massive wealth using a method lawmakers want to eliminate

After lengthy controversy --- and litigation --- about former Gov. Rick Scott's use of a blind trust, a Senate committee Tuesday is slated to take up a proposal that would block public officials from placing their assets in blind trusts in the future. The Senate Ethics and Elections Committee is scheduled to consider a bill, filed by Sen. Tom Lee, R-Thonotosassa, that would repeal part of state law that has allowed such use of blind trusts. Scott, the wealthiest governor in state history, put his assets in a blind trust, contending that it would prevent potential conflicts of interest.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is working to determine what charges might be appropriate to bring against a Maryland man who was videotaped tackling a federally protected pelican. The Baltimore Sun reports Hunter Hardesty, of Davidsonville, posted the video of the apparent attack online on Thursday. Commission officer and spokesman Bobby Dube says Hardesty enticed the pelican and then jumped on it. He says authorities are considering possible animal cruelty charges.

Bucs bracing to lose Adam Humphries and Kwon Alexander to free agency

The Bucs' approach to free agency was to retain as many of their good players as possible rather than make big splash signings. The priority was re-signing left tackle Donovan Smith, who agreed to a three-year, $41.25-million contract last week. But now they are bracing for the possibility that both linebacker Kwon Alexander and receiver Adam Humphries will strike deals with other teams. The signing period begins at 4 p.m. Wednesday. Free agents can begin negotiating and reaching verbal agreements with other teams at noon today.